Search Results for: critical%20inner%20voice

Intimacy issues, alive to intimacy, the fantasy bond, Psychalive

Staying Compatible by Staying Yourself

…eir fantasy is being disrupted. They become cynical and disillusioned, and critical of each other. Neither idealization nor cynicism has a place in a relationship between two adults who see each other as real people with positive attributes, amusing idiosyncrasies and personal limitations and flaws. * Don’t distort your partner so that you can see him/her as perfect. * Don’t try to avoid seeing your partner’s flaws. * Don’t punish your partner for…

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How to Begin Again: From Wounds to Wisdom

…d patterns of thinking that had originated very early on in an excessively critical family system. This was not news; I have spent many years working directly with emotional patterns that were limiting. The news comes when present day experiences allow remnants of old negative beliefs to be revealed. Then, with this awareness, we can choose a response versus habitual reaction. It is up to us to decide how we will create the context that transforms…

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Laughing, social laughter, benefits of laughing

Laugh it Up: Why Laughing Brings Us Closer Together

…conversations), new information reveals that laughing may actually play a critical role in buffering an individual from the effects of physiological and psychological stress. The physical act of laughing is no joke according to Dr. Robin Dunbar, who conducted a series of experiments to determine the specific role of relaxed social laughter on an individual’s well being. Scientists know that the act of laughing releases endorphins into the brain t…

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Dr. Lisa Firestone Phd, Lisa Firestone, Psychalive, The Glendon Association

Dr. Lisa Firestone Parenting Articles

…thor of the books: Sex and Love in Intimate Relationships and Conquer Your Critical Inner Voice. Visit Dr. Firestone’s PsychAlive profile page for her latest articles. Visit her website at www.drlisafirestone.com. How Childhood Defenses Hurt Us as Adults When we internalize destructive attitudes during hurtful or traumatic experiences in our past, we strengthen our “anti-self.” As we grow up, our anti-self resides within us and encourages us to ta…

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Lisa Firestone, Ph.D.

…thor of the books: Sex and Love in Intimate Relationships and Conquer Your Critical Inner Voice. Visit her site at www.drlisafirestone.com. Articles on the Self As Iraq Ends, A New Battle with PTSD Begins With 40,000 men and women returning home from Iraq in the next few months, we must greet them with the tools to combat the emotional wounds of battle. Developing resilience can truly break the internal cycle that leaves so many individuals chroni…

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PTSD, Violence treatment, psychalive

Dr. Don Meichenbaum on the Application of Stress Inoculation Treatment for Individuals Suffering from PTSD

…and that focus in on behavioral elements. The third phase, which is really critical, is application training. You want to make the training as similar to the real life situation as possible. So one of the things that becomes real interesting is that we can have rehearsal within the session, we can use imagery rehearsal, we can have graded in-vivo exposure, we can get you to perform personal experiments. In fact, if you stay with the concept of ino…

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Upcoming Webinars

…of Sex and Love in Intimate Relationships (APA Books, 2006), Conquer Your Critical Inner Voice (New Harbinger, 2002), and Creating a Life of Meaning and Compassion: The Wisdom of Psychotherapy (APA Books, 2003).   Learn more or register here Learn more or register here   Learn more or register here   Learn more or register here Learn more or register here   Webinars with Sheldon Solomon, Ph.D. Dr. Sheldon Solomon is a psychologist and the Ross Pr…

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Fear of Intimacy: Understanding Why People Fear Intimacy

…anoid or suspicious of a partner Losing interest in sexuality Being overly critical of a partner Feeling guarded or resistant to being close How to Overcome a Fear of Intimacy? In order to overcome our fear of intimacy, we must challenge our negative attitudes toward ourselves and not push our loved ones away. It is possible to challenge our core resistance to love. We can confront our negative self-image and grow our tolerance for a loving relati…

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It’s Not You It’s Me: The Truth Behind The Excuse

…ners as extensions of ourselves is that it becomes much easier to (be hypercritical of them in the same way we are hypercritical of ourselves. If they do something that we think is embarrassing, for instance, we feel ashamed. Seeing your partner as a reflection on you not only builds up resentment and pressure, it also kills your ability to see them realistically. Another problem is that in forming bonds we often lose sight of the other person as…

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Five Things You Don’t Expect When You’re Expecting: How Parenthood Impacts Your Mental Health

…e baby. By identifying where these negative thoughts, which I refer to as “critical inner voices,” came from, the man was able to challenge himself by taking actions to care for his son. He found he was not only competent in doing so, but that he also really enjoyed the tender moments between them. 3. The Fear of Becoming Your Mother or Father While we are aware of fears like not waking up to the baby crying or forgetting to put wipes in the diape…

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